What Makes You Different (Makes You Beautiful)
by gabby227
Summary: Lydia Martin isn't what everybody thinks she is. She's got another side that she hides because Jackson's always told her that nobody would accept that. So when she decides to let that side come out, Stiles decides to befriend her anyway. Things between the two of them seem to evolve, and they start to get one another. But the question remains: does he love her for who she is?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So, funny story. This story got started a long time ago, like maybe six months or so, because I wanted to write something new, and I really wanted to write Lydia/Stiles. So I started just writing. This story is based on a lot of personal experiences, so I just wanted to vent a little. Lydia is incredibly OOC (sorry not sorry) and I realize that, but it was something I struggled with.**

 **The story is finished, with 4 chapters. I don't have an updating schedule, just whenever I edit the chapters they'll make their way on here. Please be patient with me.**

Lydia Martin was different from other girls. She didn't think things the same way they did.

She was popular, sure, and smart, but she felt like she was hiding who she was most of the time. She felt like she had two different personas – _the_ Lydia Martin, the girl who had the highest GPA and who was dating the most popular guy at school, and then just plain Lydia, who was different. She was a tomboy, truly, playing football with her brothers from an early age and watching sports. Other girls at BHHS watched sports, sure, but Lydia got irritated every time one of them made comments about how the uniforms fit the guys. Sure, the girls were checking out the athletes, but Lydia - she wanted to watch the game. For the freaking game.

With Jackson, things were…complicated. Even with him, she had to hide who she was most of the time. He got really irritated every time she wanted to watch the football game with her dad, or play basketball with her brothers. He got irrationally irritated even when she went to sit in on his lacrosse practice or even went to a game.

"A girl's not supposed to want to do those things," Jackson would tell her. "Everybody knows that we're together, and they're going to start looking at you like some kind of freak if they knew you played tackle football with your brothers on Saturday afternoons, or if they discover your collection of Captain America comic books. It's not right for a girl to want to watch movies with explosions and hate _The Notebook._ That just doesn't happen and if you continue to do that, we can't be together anymore."

Jackson fucking Whittemore was always concerned about appearances, but Lydia loved him, so she always went along with whatever he said. She loved him, but she wasn't sure if he loved her back, and would do anything to be with him. Most of the time she didn't even care if he just _pretended_ to care about her, because she loved him.

 _Not today_ , Lydia thought as she woke up on that Monday morning. She was tired of pretending. She was fucking tired of not being the Lydia she wanted to be. She knew she'd probably get snubbed by the popular crowd, but she didn't care. As she got out of bed, she pulled out her "weekend clothes" as she had dubbed them. She never wore jeans to school – the jeans were specifically reserved for weekends, but she really didn't care at this point. She pulled out a pair of blue jeans and the University of Michigan football long sleeved shirt her oldest brother, Riley, had sent her from where he was majoring in medicine. A lot of things entered her mind as she showered and dressed, but she did not give one single fuck.

"Darling, are you sure you know what day it is?" Natalie Martin had asked her daughter at the breakfast table. Lydia's other brothers, the twins, were laughing and joking around, but stopped when they saw her enter. Their jaws dropped slightly.

"I know, and I don't care. I'm tired of living a lie, Mom," Lydia said. She had her hair up in a ponytail and had put on minimal makeup. "Everybody thinks I'm this sweet girly girl and that's just not me. I want to be _me_."

"Good for you," one of the twins, Justin, said to her. "I never understood why you lived like that. We all know how you really are."

"J," Lydia said, somewhat moved, "There are several things about my life that I'm not happy with. That ends now." It was true. It was all ending now.

-x-

When Lydia Martin entered the school that morning, everybody stopped and stared. Scott had even been in the middle of a sentence before just stopping. Stiles pulled his head out of his locker, where he had been trying to find his damn Chemistry textbook – seriously, where the _fuck_ did he put that thing? – when he noticed, so he looked up to see what the big fuss was about.

It was just chance that Lydia's locker was next to his, and as she undid the lock, Stiles cleared his throat before looking at her, "Wow, Lydia, you look different."

She was a little apprehensive and Stiles could sense that. "I'm not saying you look bad," he explained. "In fact, this is a really good look on you."

She smiled slightly, "Thanks, Stiles."

He was a little surprised, "You actually know my name? Of course I know who you are – you are the goddess Lydia Martin, who's been ignoring me since…well, since school even started when we were little. I just didn't think that you'd know who I was."

"Of course I know who you are," Lydia responded. Stiles was waiting for something cruel, like "I have to know who you are in order to humiliate you, Stiles," but that never came.

"Are you okay, Lydia?" he said, after a moment. She looked a little…lost.

She smiled, though Stiles could tell it was fake. It just didn't reach her eyes the way Lydia's genuine smiles did, "Of course I'm okay. I mean, why wouldn't I be?"

Stiles shrugged, and Lydia smiled. Her smile quickly turned to a frown when she saw Jackson approaching. She _really_ hadn't been looking forward to this - like, at all. As Jackson approached, she saw the look on his face, and – oh great. He was pissed.

"What the fuck do you think you're wearing?" Jackson asked her, loudly. A bunch of people just stopped and gathered around to see their showdown.

"I'm wearing clothes, Jackson," Lydia said.

"Yeah, that's the shit you wear on weekends. Not during the week. We had a fucking agreement, Lydia."

Lydia was starting to let herself get angry. She didn't care what people were going to say about her anymore; she just wanted to be who she was. So she said, " _We_ didn't have any fucking agreement, Jackson. _You_ just said what I should and shouldn't do, what I should and shouldn't wear, to be a good fucking girlfriend. I'm done with that, you know. I'm done worrying about appearances and what people think about me. I've put up with your bullshit long enough. I don't care what anybody has to say about it, Jackson, but I want to be _me_."

"You?" he scoffed, and right away Lydia knew that this was going to get ugly. "You want to wear jeans and sweatshirts, and you want everybody to know that you're secretly a geek? That you play football with your brothers on Saturday afternoons, that you watch sports center with your dad, that you secretly collect comic books?"

Stiles' eyes widened at the last one. Lydia Martin was secretly a comic book nerd? No fucking way. That was too good to be true.

"Hey, leave Steve out of this," Lydia said, trying to ease up on the tension she was feeling in her chest. "We're done, Jackson, and I'm good with that. You have no fucking idea how good I am with that." With that, she slammed her locker shut and walked off. Jackson just watched her leave, kind of dumbfounded.

-x-

During lunchtime that afternoon, Lydia hid out in the library. She didn't care what people were going to say about her, not exactly, but wanted to avoid any further scenes with Jackson. She knew that she had hurt his ego and she didn't want to deal with a Jackson Whittemore temper tantrum. Seriously, did he not realize that he was almost eighteen? Almost adult men should _not_ throw temper tantrums.

She was really hoping that nobody would find her, but wasn't that surprised when she heard Stiles' voice, "Hey there, Lydia. What are you doing in here?"

She was frustrated, but wasn't going to take it out on Stiles – he didn't deserve that. So, sighing, she said, "I'm hiding out. I don't want to deal with one of Jackson's temper tantrums."

"Yeah, I can't blame you there," he said to her as she bit into an apple. "So, uh…that stuff he said earlier, about you, is any of that stuff true?"

Lydia nodded, "Sure. I'm a girl and I like watching and playing sports with my dad and my brothers. And yes, because I know you're gonna ask, I do like comic books."

"I'm not going to make fun of you for that, Lydia," Stiles said genuinely. "I don't see any reason to."

"Really?" Lydia asked, surprised.

"Of course not. It would be hypocritical of me. I mean, I like comic books."

Lydia sighed, "Yeah, but you're you." She noticed the look on his face, so she figured she should explain a little better. "I'm not saying that you're a geek, that's not why. I'm saying that you're a guy. Guys can play sports with their friends, they can collect Captain America memorabilia and they can kick ass at Call of Duty on the weekends. People almost expect it from you guys."

"COD, really?" Stiles asked, intrigued. Lydia just nodded.

"Jackson and I don't really hang out on the weekends," Lydia said after a moment. "He would always tell me that girls aren't supposed to be into the things I am. That somehow I'm tainted because I go to football games to actually watch the fucking game, or because I root for the Detroit Tigers."

"Well, there is something wrong with that," Stiles said. Lydia was worried for a moment, but then saw the look on Stiles' face, so Lydia just stuck her tongue out at him. He just laughed. Then the moment got serious, "You know, Lydia, you should hang out with me, Scott and Allison. I know you and Ally used to hang out a lot but she hates Jackson, so…" his voice trailed off. "It's probably going to be hard for you at first, but I think that this, what you're doing, I think it's pretty great. You should always be true to yourself."

Lydia smiled, "Thanks. For not judging. For just listening."

"I'm not going to judge you for that, Lydia. I don't think it's right to stereotype or judge someone for what they're into. It's just not me."

Lydia smiled again, and this time, it was genuine, "Thanks, Stiles. I don't think you could ever understand just how much that means to me."

-x-

Stiles had been right, of course. Stiles had this annoying habit of always being right, Lydia was learning. That first week was a killer. She wasn't expecting anybody to accept who she was, but Jackson had made it his life's mission to make her as miserable as possible. He knew all her dirty little secrets, so he insisted on spilling them to anybody who was listening.

"Can you believe she hates chick flicks?" He was asking someone that day. "She'd rather watch something gory or with explosions than watch something about people's feelings." Rolling her eyes, Lydia walked past him but he jumped up to stop her. "Things can go back to normal, Lyds," he said softly, to make sure that nobody could hear him. "Just go back to the way you were and I'll take everything I've ever said back."

"No fucking way, Jackson," she said, pushing past him. She sat down at the lunch table next to Allison, who was deep in conversation with Scott.

As Lydia picked at her fruit, Stiles looked across the table at her, "Hey, the new Captain America opens this weekend. Wanna go?"

"Yeah, sounds great. I'm actually dying to see their portrayal of the Winter Soldier," she answered. Even though it'd been a week, Stiles still wasn't used to Lydia saying stuff like that – well, at least, not with all those people around. His mouth was open in an O shape, and Lydia laughed, "Hey, you might wanna close your mouth. Y'know, 'cause of flies."

Stiles nodded, "Yeah. Sure."

"You look kinda…surprised," she said, taking a bite of her fruit. "Not what you expected?"

Stiles laughed, "I guess I'm not used to the new you yet," he answered. "It is kinda weird."

"Ehh, you'll get used to it," she said, laughing. Stiles leaned over and poked Scott on the shoulder, "Hey, buddy, Captain America this weekend? Say, Saturday?"

"Can't," he said, his eyes not leaving Allison. "Ally and I have plans."

"A picnic," Allison said. "It's a family thing that Mom and Dad wanted Scott to come to."

Stiles shrugged, "Okay. Lyds, you okay with coming alone with me?"

Lydia laughed, "Sure, Stiles. I'm not afraid to be seen alone with you. Fuck whatever Jackson thinks, I don't care. Not even a little bit."

-x-

That Saturday, Lydia and Stiles went to see Captain America like they planned. They chatted before the movie and after the movie, Stiles suggested they go get a pizza. Lydia shrugged at that, and before she knew it, they were sitting in Pizza Hut.

"So, what'd you think of the movie, Lyds?" Stiles asked her. Lydia shrugged.

"I liked it. This is the kind of thing that Jackson would never go to with me. He despises comic book movies."

"Well I think it's pretty awesome that you watch these movies. Chick flicks get boring after a while."

Lydia gave him a surprised look, "I know, right? Jackson thinks there's something wrong with me because I hate them."

Stiles laughed.

Lydia cleared her throat, "Uh, this wasn't supposed to be a date, right?"

Stiles looked surprised, "Nope. Why? Did you think it was?"

Lydia shook her head, "I just wanted to make sure. It's nice to hang out with someone who truly gets me."

"You should never have to hide who you truly are," Stiles answered. "When you do that, it's like you're only living half a life, and nobody should have to do that."

Lydia smiled, "Thanks, Stiles."

What he had been saying to her made a lot of sense, after all. He _was_ right. She was tired of hiding who she was. It felt like most of her life was fake. She couldn't remember when she was as open and honest as she had been with Stiles this past week. It felt…oddly right. It was comfortable. And she wanted more of it.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I figured since I have time, I'd upload what I've got edited. Don't be surprised if it's all done by the end of tonight. I seriously need a life.**

When Lydia got home from the movie that Saturday evening, Danny Mahealani was sitting on her front porch, talking to one of her brothers. He looked at her as she climbed the steps.

"What do you want, Danny?" Lydia asked. She should have been nicer to him, but since he was Jackson's best friend, part of her wondered if Jackson had asked him to come and spy on her.

"I just came to see you," Danny replied. When Lydia gave him a look, he laughed, "Hey, Jackson may be my best friend, but you're my friend, too. I can come and check on my friend that I haven't seen in a few days."

Lydia just shrugged, going into the house. Danny followed her.

"I don't agree with what he's doing, you know," Danny continued as he followed Lydia into the kitchen. Her mom was on a business trip so she volunteered to cook – if she left it up to her brothers, they'd probably live on pizza and takeout. She didn't want to have to deal with that. She pulled a package of chicken out of the refrigerator where she had been thawing it.

She started dinner as Danny continued, "We've known each other a long time, Lydia, and I just don't like the way he's treating you. But you know Jackson – he's all about appearances, and probably always is going to be."

"It doesn't give him the fucking right," Lydia answered, and Danny nodded in agreement.

"You're right. You're completely right. But we both know that Jackson isn't going to change any." There was a moment of silence as Lydia started gathering supplies to make chicken stir-fry and so Danny said, "So, you and Stilinski…are you two a thing?"

Lydia was surprised, "Huh? Me and Stiles?"

"Well, sure. You guys have been hanging out a lot since you kinda came out as a different person."

Lydia shook her head, "Stiles and I are not a thing. I needed a friend, and we're into a lot of the same things. He likes the stuff I do, so we went to the movies today – as friends. It was gonna be a group outing, but Scott's doing something or other with Allison."

"McCall's always doing something or other with Allison," Danny commented, watching Lydia cook the chicken. "That probably means you and Stilinski hang out with each other a lot."

Lydia shrugged, "I don't know. He's a good guy."

Danny shrugged.

Danny watched Lydia start cutting up vegetables and so he said, "Jackson thinks you and Stilinski are a thing."

"Good for him," Lydia muttered, putting the vegetables in a frying pan along with the chicken. She added a little soy sauce. "I mean, am I supposed to care?"

"Look, Lydia, I think what you're doing is kind of awesome," Danny said. "It really bothers me that Jackson's spewing that girls bullshit at you, too. I mean, he accepted me but he can't do the same for you? It bothers me that everybody's pretty much alienated you, too, but I can't really do anything about it. I don't have a problem with McCall or Stilinski, I like them well enough, but Jackson's my best friend so I kind of feel that my obligation is to him."

That really hurt Lydia's feelings, to be honest. "I know you're Jackson's best friend," Lydia said, turning off the stove and dishing up the stir-fry, "but you really need to think about this. I like you, Danny, and I want to hang out with you, but I can't do that if your loyalties lie with Jackson." She sighed, "Are you staying for dinner?"

"Is that an invitation?" he asked her. She nodded

"Of course," she said. "I'd love it if you were to stay for dinner, and my brothers like you."

Danny nodded, "Okay, sure."

-x-

That Monday, Stiles was pretty surprised when Danny came over to their table, sitting down across from him. Stiles couldn't help it; he just stared. Laughing, Lydia said, "Hey, Stiles, calm down."

Stiles looked at Danny, "Uh, you know your best friend's over there."

Danny nodded, "I know."

"Then what are you doing over here?"

"You don't have to be rude," Lydia said, picking at her fruit. She picked up a strawberry and bit into it.

Danny shrugged, "I'm pissed at Jackson right now. I thought, since you guys kind of accepted Lydia, you wouldn't mind if I hang out with you guys at lunch." He made a face, "You guys don't mind, do you?"

Stiles shrugged, "No way, man, it's cool."

"You sure this is where you wanna be, though, Danny?" Lydia asked after a moment. "I mean, last I heard your _obligations_ lie to Jackson."

Okay, so yeah, Lydia was still a little hurt that he had said that to her. She knew that Danny had been Jackson's best friend for a really fucking long time, but since she and Jackson had been together for a good five years, she had really gotten to know Danny, and he was a good guy. There was a reason that everybody liked him.

"No, Lyds, I'm good," Danny said, picking up an apple and biting into it. "This is exactly where I wanna be."

-x-

Time seemed to start to meld together. Before she even realized it, Lydia'd been sitting, eating and talking to Stiles, Scott and Allison at lunch for a month. It'd been a glorious month – a month without Jackson's bullshit to get in the way. When she went out to her car after school and saw Jackson leaning against it, though, she knew something was up.

"What do you want, Jackson?" Lydia asked in a tired voice. "I don't really want to deal with your bullshit right now."

"What, did you and Stilinski break up?" he asked snidely. He cocked his head to the side, "It was only a matter of time. You're way too good for him."

"Stiles and I aren't dating, Jackson. He's was just there for me at a time where I really needed someone and you weren't there for me. I'm not getting back together with you and I'm not taking back who I am, so just forget it. I'm better off without you."

"Now you're starting to sound like a crappy pop song," Jackson muttered. "Did you lie to me about liking that, too, or were you at least partially truthful to me?"

Lydia's eyes filled up with rage, "Let me get one thing perfectly clear, Jackson Whittemore. I was never dishonest with you. You knew exactly how I was when we were dating. You knew about it all – the comic books, the sports, even the action movies. I never lied to you, not once."

Jackson just shrugged at her.

Lydia rolled her eyes, "Look, Jackson, if there's something you want, spit it out already. Dad's in San Francisco for the weekend and Mom's got meetings until late. I've gotta get home and make dinner for my brothers."

"I just think you're too good for Stilinski," Jackson said, watching her closely. "We should get back together."

"Jackson, I'm only half a person when I'm together with you, and I'm tired of that. I don't want to be that Lydia, not anymore. I like who I am now, and I like hanging out with Scott, Stiles and Allison." She sighed, opening up the door to her car, "And by the way? Stiles and I aren't a thing, contrary to popular opinion. But, in all honesty, I wouldn't mind if we were."

-x-

"Dude, I just heard the funniest thing," Stiles said, coming into Scott's room that afternoon, plopping down onto the bed where his best friend was trying to do his Chemistry homework. _Trying_ was the key word, because every time he started it, something would catch his attention. This time, it just happened to be Stiles.

Scott put down his pencil and looked at his best friend. After a minute of just staring at each other, Scott said, "What did you hear, Stiles? I'm waiting."

"Sorry," Stiles said. His attention span just was crappy today. He had forgotten his Adderall again. "I heard that Jackson told Danny who told Allison that Lydia wants to be with me."

Scott shrugged, "Whatever, dude. I thought that'd be your dream come true."

"It is a dream come true," Stiles answered, "but I wouldn't know the first thing about what to do with Lydia. I mean, yeah, I've been in love with her for forever, and yeah, I want to be with her in that sense, but I don't know the first thing about dates or girls. I mean, what would I even do for her? She deserves everything and I don't know if I could ever give it to her."

"You can't sit there and tell me that Lydia's the same person you thought she was a month ago," Scott said. "She's different, right?"

"Well, yeah, she is, but at the same time I wouldn't know…"

"She's cool, right? She's, like, a fan girl and shit, right? Into comic books and video games and sports like we are, right? So why not talk about that kinda stuff. Why not treat her like you treat me?"

"'Cause the two of us are bros, dude," Stiles said.

"Well, duh," Scott answered. "I mean, ask her to play sports or something. Talk to her about comic books. Do you know her favorite superhero?"

"Duh," Stiles said. "She likes Captain America."

"So talk to her about Captain America, dumbass," Scott said, picking up his pencil once more. "I don't understand why you're having such a hard time with that concept."

"Dude, you were like this when you first met Allison, so don't even. I just wouldn't know the first thing to say to her."

"It's easy." Scott watched Stiles for a few minutes before saying, "You both like the same things. Talk to her about those."

Scott watched Stiles carefully before saying, "Dude, is _this_ what I was like when I first met Allison? I'm so fucking sorry about that, man. This is pretty annoying."

"Yeah, yeah," Stiles said.

"You've gotta go, though. I've gotta get my Chemistry grade up or no lacrosse. Go over to her house, talk to her. Hang out with her. She likes you as a friend, maybe you've got a chance with her now. But you need to go."

"You are no fun, Scotty," Stiles said. Scott just ushered his friend out of his room and closed the door.

-x-

All the way over to the Martin house, Stiles was getting his freak out over with, that way he wouldn't do it while he was in front of Lydia. It was no secret that Stiles had a crush on Lydia; practically everyone knew about it. Even if she knew about his crush, Stiles didn't want to look like any more like an idiot in front of her.

He didn't even get to knock on the door before it swung open. Lydia's younger brother, one of the twins, was standing there. He watched Stiles carefully.

"Hey, man," Stiles said, feeling a little awkward. "Is, uh…is Lydia here?"

He watched Stiles carefully. A few very awkward moments passed before he said, "Why do you want her?"

Stiles cleared his throat, "Uh, she's my friend. I thought I'd come over and say hello."

"Are you friends with Jackson?" he asked hesitantly.

Stiles snorted, "Fuck no. Jackson hates me and I can't exactly stand him either."

The boy, who Stiles knew as either Justin or Sam (hey, they were identical twins, they both looked exactly alike), watched him for another moment before shrugging and saying, "You hate Jackson, so that gives you points, I guess. Lyds is in the kitchen."

"Could you show me the way? I've never actually been in your house before," Stiles said, rubbing the back of his neck. The boy shrugged and led Stiles into the kitchen, where Lydia was browning hamburger on the stove. Stiles thought she was just adorable, with her hair pulled up into a messy bun and was humming to herself. He stood there and just listened to her for a moment and then let out a laugh, "Holy crap, Lyds, are you humming the Spiderman theme song?"

She whipped around, "Stiles," she said, taking a few deep breaths. "I didn't hear you come in."

"Sorry," he said, sitting down at a stool by the kitchen island. "But, seriously, were you humming the Spiderman theme song?"

Lydia laughed, "Pretty stupid, right? But it's just in my head. I can't get rid of it."

Stiles laughed, "Nah, it's not stupid. I almost didn't recognize it at first."

Lydia laughed; God, she even had a gorgeous laugh. She finished what she was doing and turned to Stiles after a moment, "What're you doing here?"

Stiles shrugged, "I came by to see my friend. Is that so horrible?"

Lydia shrugged, stirring the noodles that were in a pot. She looked up at him, "So, what's _really_ up, Stiles?"

"What do you mean?" His voice did not squeak at that. It _didn't_.

"We've been hanging out a lot the past month," Lydia said, going over to the pantry and gathering a few cans. She looked at him, "I mean, whenever you show up, you have a reason."

He frowned.

Lydia sighed, "That's not what I meant. I meant that you don't do anything without a reason. If you want to hang out here, that's fine, you know. I mean, I'm almost finished with dinner and if you don't mind hamburger, you can stay, but you don't have to."

"What're you making?"

"Mom always calls it hamburger casserole. It's just hamburger, noodles, mushroom soup and mushrooms. Do any of those sound okay?"

Stiles nodded, "Sure."

She was making dinner in silence when Stiles said, "So, hey, I heard the funniest thing today."

Lydia watched him, a silent urge to continue.

"Well, Allison told me that Danny told her that you told Jackson that you wanted to date me. Is there, uh, any truth to that?"

Lydia nodded slowly, "Yeah. I said that."

"Why?"

Lydia rolled her eyes, "Because, Stiles, I like you. You're a good guy. Better than that jackass Jackson Whittemore, that's for damn sure."

"So, what do you say to getting dinner with me then? Say, tomorrow night?"

"Can we make it lunch?" Lydia asked. Stiles looked at her curiously.

"The reason I'm asking is because Dad's at a conference in San Francisco, and Mom's got a new stubborn client and has been working overtime to appease him. I need to be here to make dinner for my brothers."

"They can't make it themselves?"

Lydia shook her head, "If I don't make it for them, they're gonna end up ordering pizza or takeout food. And I don't want to hear Mom bitch about how Justin's spending his money on crappy food when you can make better food at home for nothing."

"Lunch is good," Stiles answered after a few moments of silence. "I could go for lunch."

"Great," Lydia said, smiling. "We can go to the café, or whatever, it's totally your call." She mixed ingredients together in a big pot before saying, "So, you wanna stay for dinner?"

Stiles grinned, "Sure. I'd love to."


	3. Chapter 3

"So she asked you to stay for dinner," Scott said into the phone. Stiles sighed and nodded, even though he knew his best friend couldn't see him.

"Yeah, she asked me to stay for dinner, and believe me, Scotty, it was the most awkward dinner I've ever been to."

Stiles couldn't help but remember the way that her brothers watched him closely, and how they made comments that Stiles was pretty sure were supposed to be threats. And it didn't help that Justin-or-Sam (that's what he was calling them in his head, because even though Lydia told him last night how to tell the two apart, he still couldn't figure it out) were pretty threatening all by themselves, even though they were only fourteen.

"And how're things?" Scott asked. "I mean, did she say that she'd go out with you?"

Oh yeah. Stiles had almost forgotten that's why he called Scott in the first place.

"Yeah, she agreed. To lunch, though, not dinner."

"Lunch is good," Scott said. "I mean, you eat lunch."

"True," Stiles said. "I was just hoping to woo her with flowers and a fancy meal."

"Stiles," Scott said after a moment, "you do realize that the image you've had of Lydia in your head all these years has nothing to do with the way she really is, right? Like, she's not the girl you thought she was. It was all just an act."

"Yeah, so?"

"So," Scott said, sighing deeply, "it means that she's probably not a flowers and fanciness kind of girl. Something tells me that she's not."

"How would you even know that?" Stiles asked him.

"Because, Stiles, she likes action movies, comic books, video games. She likes sports. She's not the girly little Lydia you used to think she was. So how about you ask her what she wants to do."

"I don't know, dude, wouldn't that be weird?" Stiles asked.

"No way. Asking is good."

Stiles sighed, but then Scott said, "Dude, asking is always good."

-x-

Stiles wanted to do something nice when he picked Lydia up for lunch that day – he wanted to bring her flowers or candy or something, but he wasn't sure what to do. Scott was right, after all – Lydia was different now. He had no idea what to get her.

When she stepped out on the front porch, he greeted her with a smile, "Hey."

Lydia smiled, "Hi. So, where are we going?"

"The café down on Main Street. Sound good?"

Lydia nodded, "Yeah, it sounds great."

They decided to take her car ("Seriously, Stiles, I don't trust my life in that thing," she said, motioning to the Jeep. "It's got to be older than we are.") and she drove them to the café.

The Blue Moon Café had been around for a while. Even though they had sufficient money, Lydia's older brother Riley loved eating at Blue Moon. He was actually really good friends with the owner's daughters. Lydia was secretly pleased that Stiles had decided to bring her here.

"So, I'm going to feel like an actual moron for asking this," Stiles said after a waitress had taken their orders, "but I had the biggest dilemma earlier when I was trying to figure out where to take you. I'm pretty sure that Scott wanted to strangle me. So, Lydia, what _do_ you like now? I mean, are you a pure romantic, do you want to go to a football game – what?"

Lydia nodded, taking a drink of her iced tea, "Okay. You know, Stiles, I'm actually surprised you hadn't asked me this question before. You usually research the hell out of things, so I figured you'd want to know. I like simple things, to answer your question. I hate fancy and elaborate, actually. In all honesty, I'm good with a picnic in the park. A drive to the lake. Even just hanging out, eating takeout and watching movies at home. Jackson never got that, though. He insisted on elaborate dates, candle-lit dinners, the more money he could spend, the better. It always drove me crazy, like he was trying to buy my affection, and I hated it. But there really is no telling Jackson Whittemore what to do. He did it to impress everyone else, you know?"

Stiles nodded.

"Ry makes fun of me," she said, talking about her brother Riley. "He teases me because I'm probably the most unromantic girl that he's ever met. That's what he likes to tell me. And yeah, I like flowers on occasion, but I don't want, like, a bunch of them all the time. Candy's always good – but again, nothing fancy. Just get me a Hershey's bar and call it good."

"So you don't like fancy dates?"

Lydia sighed, "They make me uncomfortable. I don't know what to do at places that are way too fancy."

Stiles just shrugged. When their meal came and they started to eat, Stiles said, "Tell me more about you. About Lydia Martin. What makes you tick?"

Lydia shrugged, "I dunno. I'm pretty simple. I like simple things. Y'know, video games and comic book movies. I'm nothing like the Lydia that everybody saw for so long."

"Why _did_ you do that, Lyds?" Stiles asked softly. Lydia sighed.

"Because I felt it was necessary. I don't know if you remember when we were kids, but I was an extreme tomboy back then. And then, when my friends started getting interested in makeup and boys, I just…I felt like they were gonna leave me behind if I didn't like those things, too. Jackson and I started dating when we were fourteen, but I didn't actually start thinking about boys that way until I was almost sixteen. Those couple of years was just an act. And Jackson never let me forget it, either."

"So your relationship wasn't that great," Stiles said. Lydia shrugged.

"I dunno," she said, taking a bite of her salad. "I mean, sure, Jackson and I had been friends a long time. I mean, my parents are friends with his parents and everything, but my brothers _never_ liked him. I used to think it was just Riley being an overprotective big brother, but when Sam and Justin started hating him too, I knew it was probably Jackson. I mean, he _is_ pretty douchey."

"Is this a test?" Stiles asked suddenly. "I mean, if I agree with you, does that mean that you're never going to talk to me again?"

Lydia laughed. God, she was absolutely stunning when she laughed. She laughed with her whole body and Stiles wasn't sure he'd seen anything more beautiful in his entire life. A minute passed and she cleared her throat before saying, "No, it's not a test. Everybody always said that the only reason I stayed with Jackson to begin with –" she saw the puzzled expression on Stiles' face, so she said, "What? I'm the queen of high school gossip, okay? I knew _exactly_ what they were saying about me. Anyway, they said the only reason I kept dating Jackson was because he was good to me. Well, news flash. He wasn't. I endured so much emotional abuse from him. He knew my one greatest fear was being alone. And he always told me that no guy was going to put up with me being me. You know, with the action movies, and the comic books, and the video games. Watching sports center with my dad and playing football with my brothers. He would always tell me that guys want _real_ girls – you know, girls into their hair and makeup, girls who weren't ashamed of being a girl. And I'm not ashamed, okay? I'm proud of who I am, it's just…I didn't want to be alone."

"So what changed?" Stiles asked, genuinely interested.

"I was tired of lying. Tired of hiding. I wanted to be _me._ I was so used to hiding who I was in front of everyone, and it was starting to genuinely bother me. And I realized, this is me, whether or not Jackson likes it, and I'm gonna fucking own it."

"That's a good philosophy," Stiles said, taking a bite of his cheeseburger. "I mean, really." His gaze softened as he watched her face, "Nobody deserves to be treated the way that Jackson treats people. It's just not cool."

Lydia nodded, "I know, but it's not like he's ever going to change."

-x-

After lunch that day came real dates. Dinner. Movies. Bowling. They even went to the arcade that one time. Stiles was really start to get in deep. But even with all the dates, and hanging out at school, Lydia still felt…insecure. She felt incredibly insecure, even though she tried not to let anybody know it.

The reason it all came to head, though, wasn't Stiles, or anyone in their little group. No, it was Jackson.

It was a Friday, almost two months since Stiles and Lydia had gone on their first date. Jackson grabbed Lydia in the hallway, grabbed her on her forearm and pushed her up against the wall. The school day was almost over, and Lydia knew that Scott and Stiles were on their way to lacrosse practice right now.

"Not so tough now that your guard dogs aren't here, huh?" Jackson said in her ear. Lydia struggled to get free, but it just made Jackson's grip tighter. "Are you fucking them both?"

Lydia shot him a look, "What is wrong with you? I'm not even sleeping with one of them."

"He's going to get bored of you, Lydia," Jackson said, watching her closely. "Eventually, he's going to realize that you're not right. You're not a girl; you don't act like one. He's going to realize – and I can't believe I'm going to say this about fucking Stilinski – but he's going to realize that he wants someone who's more of a girl. Someone who's not ashamed of actually being one."

The words hurt. They hurt a lot, in fact, but she was trying really hard to not let him get to her. She was failing miserably, in fact, but then she heard someone yell at Jackson. What they yelled was indecipherable, but as soon as Jackson let her go, Lydia turned and ran. She didn't care that she had a tutoring session that day – she'd call Tiffany and explain – but she just had to get out of there.

Of course Jackson was right. Stiles probably would get bored of her eventually. She wasn't a normal girl. She'd _never_ been a normal girl. And even though everybody in school knew that Stiles had been harboring a ten year crush on her, now that he knew how Lydia _really_ was, he'd get tired. He'd want different things; things that Lydia herself wouldn't be able to give him. And she knew that.

She practically sped to get home and then went up to her room. She just needed to be alone right now. She'd been a fool, thinking that Stiles didn't care how she was. Of course he cared – any guy who said he _didn't_ care was obviously lying.

Jackson's words threw Lydia into a depression. She had dealt with depressions before, but this time…it was just that Lydia had thought that she and Stiles had something special. And yeah, maybe they still had something. She never asked him, because she was afraid what his answer was going to be. And instead of facing it head on, she avoided it, like the chicken she was.

After a week of avoiding Stiles at all costs, Lydia's younger brother Justin was the one to make it stop. The next Friday, he cornered her in the den. "I haven't seen Stiles around lately," he had said, trying to be vague.

"I can't see him right now," Lydia answered.

"I know what Jackson said to you, Lyds," Justin said as she was turning, preparing to leave. "Stiles knows it, too, but every time he tries to talk to you, you run the other way. He's _not_ like Jackson is, Lyds. He's not gonna hurt you."

Lydia just sighed.

"Seriously, Lyds, you two need to have a talk. So you need to get your ass over there and talk to him already."

Lydia sighed again and then looked at her brother, "What if says bad things? What if I don't like what he has to say?"

"Then you can blame me," Justin answered. "Please Lydia, I'm practically begging you here – just go and talk to him. What he has to say just may surprise you."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Like I said, this is it. I figured since I had the time, I'd just upload these here, and this is the last part. Now, there is smut in this chapter, just so you know. But thanks for reading, guys!**

When Lydia got to Stiles' house that night, the sheriff let her in right away.

"It's a good thing you're here," he said. "I've been worried about him all week."

Lydia nodded, "Yeah, I was going through some stuff. One of my brothers kinda told me I needed to do this."

The sheriff nodded and told Lydia that Stiles was in his bedroom. Lydia nodded and went upstairs, knocking on the door that she knew belonged to Stiles.

"Jesus, Dad," Stiles yelled. "I told you that I don't want to be both –" he stopped short once he yanked the door open and saw Lydia standing there. She smiled weakly.

"Hi," she said. "I thought we could talk."

"Is this a bad thing or a good thing?" Stiles asked bitterly. "I mean, are you here to break up with me?"

Lydia shook her head, "No, I'm not. I…I'm sorry I've been avoiding you. I've been working through some stuff. Can I come in?"

Stiles nodded and moved aside so she could come through the door. She sat down on his bed.

"Jackson told me that you'd get sick of me eventually," Lydia said, avoiding Stiles' gaze. She thought she might as well just go all in. "He told me that you'd find better. That you wanted someone who acted more like a girl than I did. I'm sorry, Stiles," Lydia said, finally looking at him. "I'm not normal, and if you wanna break this off because of that, I'm not gonna get mad."

"You think I want to break this off?" Stiles asked, coming over to sit down beside her. He cupped her cheek and said, "I've been in love with you for a long fucking time, Lyds. And yeah, for a long time I thought you were someone else, but then I met you – the _real_ you, and I fell in love with you even more than I thought possible. Every little bit of you that makes you different, Lyds – that's what makes you beautiful."

"Are you sure?" Lydia asked.

"Look, guys like Jackson want a girl who looks like she just stepped out of a magazine, and I get that. I can't _understand_ it, but I get it. But that's not what I want. It's never been what I want. I like girls who are down to earth and comfortable with who they are. And the fact that I can geek out with you over superheroes and video games? That's just a bonus. I love that."

Lydia still looked a little apprehensive. That's when Stiles leaned over and kissed her. They may have been dating, and out on real dates, but they really hadn't kissed that much. So when he covered her lips with his, she was taken a little by surprise. It didn't take very long, though, for Lydia to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him like it was the best thing she'd ever done.

He was made for kissing. His lips were soft and warm, and his mouth was so damn inviting. With his oral fixation, Lydia figured that Stiles would be a good kisser – and boy, was she ever right. Bringing his hand up, he caressed her cheek with his thumb as Lydia tilted her head, giving him access to deepen the kiss. They sat there and made out for a while, and with Stiles it felt…different.

When she broke the kiss to breathe, Lydia said, "I like kissing you. I really like making out with you, Stiles. It feels different. It feels…fun."

"I'm glad," Stiles said.

There was a moment of silence between the two of them before Lydia cupped Stiles' cheek, stroking her thumb across his cheekbone. She leaned back in and they kissed for a little while longer.

Lydia felt this need. She needed him. With his kisses, and with the way that she felt around him, he awakened something inside of her that she had never felt with Jackson. It wasn't long before she broke the kiss, trying to rid Stiles of his shirt. He looked confused at first.

"Is this okay?" Lydia said. "Because we don't have to. I just thought…" her voice trailed off.

"This isn't my first time, Lyds," Stiles said. It made Lydia want to ask who, but she kept her mouth shut. Instead, she looked at him.

"Still, I don't want to force you into something you don't wanna do. Just because it's not your first time doesn't mean you're comfortable doing it with me."

Stiles laughed, "Trust me, Lydia, I've wanted to be with you – in every way I possibly can – for a long fucking time."

Lydia nodded and launched herself at him. She pushed him over on the bed and straddled his waist, leaning down to kiss him. When she heard the sheriff outside the door, though, she quickly got off of him and sat down beside him. Stiles hastily threw his shirt back on.

"Hey, kid?" John said to his son, opening the door. He cocked an eyebrow at the way the two of them were sitting there, but didn't say anything. "I'm going down to the station, some new evidence came in on one of the cases. Stay out of trouble."

Lydia smiled at him while Stiles nodded. "Bye, Sheriff," she said sweetly.

Once he was gone, she threw Stiles' shirt on the other side of the room and climbed back on top of him, kissing him deeply. God, he tasted so good, and it kind of surprised Lydia. She hadn't known that she wanted this all along, but it felt so right, like this is what she should be doing. As they made out, she ground her hips down onto him, and Stiles let out a low moan.

He surprised her by grabbing her by the waist and rolling them over so that he was on top of her. Stiles controlled the kiss, which surprised Lydia tremendously – she had always thought that Stiles would be the submissive one, but hey, she wasn't complaining. As Stiles kissed down her neck, Lydia moaned softly. It felt so fucking good, and sex with Jackson had never felt like this.

She leaned up for a minute, discarding her shirt and flinging it across the room. Stiles looked down at her appreciatively.

"God, Lyds, you're so beautiful," he murmured, and Lydia wasn't sure if he meant for her to hear it or not.

She smiled, though, and said, "You're not so bad yourself." And he really wasn't. She wasn't as superficial as everybody thought she was, as she pretended to be, but Stiles had a nice body. At the end of sophomore year, the coach started putting Stiles in to first line in lacrosse, and the extra practices really showed. He wasn't ripped, but he was still _very_ attractive.

He leaned down and took her lips once more, but Lydia wasn't going to just lay here. She rolled them over again (and knew that she only could do it because Stiles let her – he was pretty strong now) so that she was on top of him. Reaching back, she unhooked her bra and flung it to join her shirt on the other side of the room.

They discarded their clothes and when they were both were naked, Stiles leaned down and kissed her once again. She was on her back again, and Stiles took the time to kiss his way down her body. He kissed her neck, leaving open mouthed kisses on her skin, and then cupped her breasts in his big hands. God, his hands were something that Lydia always loved, but she didn't have time to think about that right now, as he took a nipple in his mouth, biting it gently as he kneaded her breasts in his hand.

After he was satisfied with the state of her nipples, he continued to kiss his way south until he got in-between her thighs. He teased her a little, kissing and nibbling on her things, her lower stomach, until he spread her legs further and took an experimental lick at her center. She moaned loudly.

As he ate her out, moans and noises spilled from Lydia's mouth. She didn't mean to be loud, and was thankful that the sheriff wasn't home, but something about Stiles was just…he was so good at this. He fucked his tongue into her and she gasped, "Need you on my clit."

He complied, sucking the hardened bud into his mouth as he inserted two fingers inside of her. He crooked them so he was hitting her g-spot and that just made her moan. He lapped at her clit faster now, fingering her in earnest, and it wasn't long before she was tightening around him. She let out a low groan as her head tipped back.

"Do you have condoms?" she asked Stiles after he withdrew his fingers. He almost looked embarrassed.

"No, I don't," he groaned. "I didn't think that this would actually happen"

"It's okay," she said, "I've got one in my purse. You need to let me up, though."

"I'll get it," Stiles said. Lydia laughed.

"What, do you think that if you let me up I'll never come back?" she asked him. She saw the blush that covered his cheeks.

"No need to be embarrassed," Lydia said. "You just made me come harder than anybody has ever before. I'm not going anywhere."

When Stiles came back to bed with the condom, he ripped the packet and rolled it on himself. Lydia spread her legs as far as she could as Stiles settled in-between them. He entered her in one thrust, and once he bottomed out, Lydia groaned. He was bigger than she was used to, so she said, "Give me a minute."

"Are you okay?" Stiles asked, clearly concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered. "You're a little bigger than what I'm used to. It's kind of a stretch."

Stiles nodded as he kissed Lydia again, deep and filthy, and then started leaving open mouth kisses on her neck and shoulder.

"Okay," she breathed, "I need you to move."

When Stiles started to thrust, it felt so good. He was so attentive, so better than Jackson, whose main purpose was to get himself off. Stiles treated Lydia just like a princess, and the sex was not bad, either. He reached in-between the two of them and started rubbing her clit in slow circles.

"Shit," she groaned. "I'm not gonna last. Gonna come," she mumbled out.

"Do it, Lyds," Stiles said. "I wanna feel you come around me."

Somehow, him telling her to do it just tipped her over the edge and she came around him. It wasn't long afterwards that he came, filling the condom, and they just lay there for a moment, sweat dripping down their bodies. Lydia leaned up and kissed Stiles deeply.

-x-

The next Monday at school, Lydia was, once again, cornered by Jackson. But this time, it was Lydia who was going to be in control of the situation. When he grabbed her arm and pinned her up against the wall, she brought her knee up and kneed him in the groin. As he doubled over in pain, Lydia looked at him and said, "Stiles loves me for who I am, Jackson. It's something that you never did. And I believe him."

"He'll leave eventually," Jackson said. "You know it's true."

"No, it's not," Lydia said, gaining confidence. "He said it's not true and I believe him. He also treats me so much better than you ever did." She started to walk off, but then turned around again and looked at him, "And also, Jackson? Get some new fucking material." And with that, she walked off.

At lunch that day, Stiles asked her about her confrontation with Jackson. She looked at him quizzically.

"Gossip travels fast," he explained to her. "A lot of people saw it. Are you okay?"

Lydia nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine. I just…he tried to tell me that you'd leave. But I know better. I know you love me for me, and I'm better off without him."

Stiles nodded, "I told you, Lyds. What makes you different makes you beautiful, and I like that you're not part of the mold. I like your originality, and I love you for it."

Lydia smiled. She had a little trouble believing him, just because it was so new, but she knew that Stiles meant every word.


End file.
